Unprecedented

Two posts in as many days?! Crazy, you say? No, just ambitious (I got off of work early this morning, so I had a chance to do some things I want to do).

I even have productive photos to show off. Are you ready?

Here goes:

A new Storybook necklace! Hooray! This one is so sweet and happy, I almost can't stand it.

KNITTING! Yes, that's right - I can knit (kind of), and here is a buyable to prove it:

Update - All of my new pretties have sold! Wow! Thank you so much!

Okay, kids, that's all for this afternoon - I'm exhausted from all the work I did today (kidding!).

Cheerio!

-Sarah

Busy. And wordy. Very wordy.

Every time I log on to make a new post here, I think to myself, "This is it - I'm going to start posting more often now - it starts TONIGHT." And then, I get busy with all kinds of more important, but less relaxing, things like finding the women's performance fleece mock 1/2 zip in electric blue in a size XXL for a customer who needs it NOW. Oh, wait - that's not more important than my hobbies and interests, is it?

I'm torn. I LOVE Christmas - it's definitely my favorite time of year, but working in retail during the "Holiday Season" twists my innards into an unrecognizable pulp of agony and delight. Why do people get exponentially more STUPID during Christmas? What is it about gift shopping that makes people turn into absolutely vile and disgusting pigs, throwing merchandise all over the floor, pushing and sneering and harumph-ing, just so they can get the sweatshirt they need for $2 cheaper than usual? Why?

At the same time, though, I revel in the decorations, the snow, the cold, the atmosphere of Christmas everywhere outside of the Gap. Last time I made the trek to Michael's craft store, I spent about 40 minutes browsing in the Christmas aisles (and this was before Halloween, for goodness sakes!). Why do I have to have a job that I loathe during a time of year that I adore? I worked two shifts on Black Friday, because our store opened at midnight, and then I came in to close that night as well (13 hours, all told), and I came home feeling so depleted that I could hardly handle putting my pajama pants on one leg at a time. Why?

Okay, the rant is over. Wait - one more thing - why in the world would an electric toothbrush have to cost almost $90? NINETY DOLLARS? Are you kidding me? It's a toothbrush! Nevertheless, I have a brand spanking new Sonicare toothbrush now, and I'm very wary of using it. Am I the only one who finds the human mouth downright yucky?

Seriously, though, it's time for bed. I have to be back at work at 6am tomorrow morning. I wish I had some new projects to show off, but that will have to wait. I just put the finishing touches on an oh-so-cozy wool blend scarflette that is so beautiful, I may have to keep it. But we'll see how that goes. Then, I have two projects that need to be blocked, and need buttons added and seams seamed up, and those will be ready to show, as well.

I love knitting.

Cheers

-Sarah

Coming out of hiding

Well, not "hiding" per se - more like "seriously nerdy seclusion." Which means that I have been playing an MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) called MapleStory all this past week.

WOW.

I am now a level 15 swordsman, and have been sexually harassed by packs of young boys several times (which, sadly, is flattering, because my character really does look like me).

First thing anyone in this game ever said to me? "can i rape u?" My reply? "Learn proper grammar and spelling and then we'll talk."

But anyway, in crafty news (this is supposed to be a craft blog, right?), I just listed this pretty in my shop yesterday afternoon:

It's been very difficult to make and list things lately, because I've been working so much and fighting off a nasty cold (which I finally succumbed to and am now in the throes of), but I'm hoping that will change this week with my (hopefully) lighter schedule. So, keep an eye out for new and amazing creations!

Have a lovely evening!

-Sarah

Absent, again.

I really wish that I didn't have to work EVERY day at the Gap. Especially not at 5am on a day when I'm not even supposed to work, with a manager that hates and excludes me. I don't like it. Not one bit.

But, in order to cheer myself up, I've made myself the proud new owner of this little beauty:

It should be arriving on Friday, and then you will never see the top of my head again.

It all goes along with my ever-increasing desire to actually become a fairy tale character - because we all know that fairy tale characters wear ridiculously large and floppy toques in an effort to be cool.

And I do feel a little bit better.

Just a little.

Now, I'm going to drink some chamomile tea and play MapleStory like the raging nerd that I am. And I'm happy about that.

Love,

Sarah

Convalescence

I am recovering from a very mysterious bout of stomach-grossness from yesterday. It was so strange - I would be fine for twenty minutes and then all of a sudden I would feel the need to expel the contents of my stomach (which were nothing!). That went on all day yesterday, and this morning, I am fine.

Anyway, during my convalescence (over-dramatic much?), I plan on drawing and painting, whilst watching "The Royal Tennenbaums" and other such cinematic gems. Oh, and drinking LOTS of coffee. Yeah.

And I finished "Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell." That book is so beautiful. I cried when I finished it because it was over. It's so much worse when a book is large like that - you build a relationship with it, and when it's finally finished, it's almost like the heartache of a break-up, only in miniature. And I know I'm not the only book-freak out there, so don't tell me I'm being weird and sentimental. Ah, well, now I'm on to finishing "Grimms' Complete Fairy Tales," "The Bedside Book of Death," and "The Oxford Book of Victorian Ghost Stories." Then, I'm on to "Andersen's Complete Fairy Tales" and my Children's Lit. class text.

I guess this post didn't really have a point, other than to vent about the end of reading that amazing novel, but now I feel like I've committed myself to doing something today, because I said I would here. Funny how that works.

So, I'm off to make coffee and start in on the art-fest that is today.

Love,

Sarah

More, more, more!

Always more!

Here are the new pretties added to the shop in the last couple of days:

That's not all that's new over there, but they are a few of my favorites. I think I need to get to work on some more insect jewelry - possibly some more scorpions and a crab, and maybe a beetle or two. I have the pendants sitting here, waiting to be turned into something crazy-awesome, but I'm just so darned lazy.

In other news, I'm almost done with "Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell," and let me tell you - that book holds up! It's over 700 pages of awesomeness, and it never gets tedious or lofty or dull for a moment. I only have 30 pages left, and I'm itching to read them - too bad I have to work at the Gap from 1 until 10 today. Maybe I can sneak a few "reading breaks" in when we're slow?

Lastly, I would like to, once again, declare my love for animals in people clothes with this adorable work I found on Etsy (that place just eats my time - it's crazy):

I love him, although I would not be happy to see him walking the telephone wires over my house like that (well, the amazing umbrella kind of makes up for that, I guess).

Okay, kids, I'll see you later.

Love,

Sarah

More fuzzy buyables

Two new fuzzy buyables have made their appearance in the shop today. I give you:

Hubert, the Proper English Gentleman Mouse

and Jack, the Trick or Treat Halloween Clown Monster

If you are interested in purchasing either of these fine little needle sculpted wonders, head on over to the shop!

*Kiss*

-Sarah

A new little friend

...has just alighted in the shop, and she is pretty precious! Here's a peek:

She is Martine, the French Refugee Mouse. To read her story, or to give her a home, go here.

I've just returned from a very satisfying trip to Michael's, where I purchased copious amounts of tiny objects. WAY more than I should have, that's for sure. Here, let me show you:

From left to right, top to bottom, we have (all miniatures): rolling pins, clothespins, white doves, trick-or-treat buckets, drums, teacups and saucers, candy canes, speckled eggs, (even though you can't tell, I promise that they are) the TINIEST buttons ever, wooden balls, top hats, thread spools, wooden blocks, wooden toys (two containers' worth!), birds' nests, twine, ribbon, a new "thank you" stamp for packaging, a pincushion tomato, more buttons, cowboy hats, Chinese takeout boxes, popcorn bags, shopping bags, Christmas lights, and another stamp for packaging. WHEW! That's a lot of tinies! I'm so excited to get sculpting!

What a great day it's been so far (despite the fact that I have a headache, and feel altogether as if I ran full-tilt into a brick wall). A real breakfast always makes the rest of my day awesome, and my darling Dad made eggs, bacon (which I hadn't eaten in almost eight years before today!), and coffee. Delicious!

Now I'm off to start on another little creature, so I'll see you later!

Love,

Sarah

All gone...

That's right - the bunnies are on their way to a good home as we speak (type?), with a wonderful lady in Illinois. They sold just a couple of hours after they first appeared in
the shop.

But, don't fret! More silly little fuzzies will be joining the ranks of buyables soon, so you can have one of your very own. Heck, you could have your very own personal menagerie.

In fact, I just finished up the most precious little mouse-lady ever. Her name is Martine, and she is just arrived from France, where she lived in contentment in a provincial patisserie, until the heartless shopkeeper brought home a most unwelcome surprise - a cat. Now, she is living with me as a refugee until someone is kind enough to take her in. Tomorrow, she will take up temporary residence in the shop, where she will wait with baited breath for someone to claim her. Won't you help a poor, helpless mouse out of a pickle?

Until tomorrow,

Sarah

That's right! Winifred and Merle up there are both now buyables in my Etsy shop! Hop quick like a bunny over there if you want one (ha! I'm so full of bunny-related puns lately).

I am really loving this whole needle felting business. It's so satisfying and relaxing. Why doesn't everyone do it? Currently in the works is a mysterious, cloaked gentleman by the name of Rodrigo (he is a gypsie, so perhaps I shouldn't call him a gentleman?). More on that later.

I must retire to my evening of chocolate covered raisins and Mystery Science Theater 3000 now, but I will see you later!

Love,

Sarah

Toymaking Madness!

Here's what I did tonight:

Pierre, the French Circus Bear

And a fluffy, grey bunneh (why am I typing "bunneh" instead of simply "bunny?" Weird).

They are needle felted, but they currently lack eyes.... And the bunneh lacks a hat (a sore misfortune, indeed). Bunneh will probably end up in my Etsy
shop tomorrow, or whenever he shapes up and gets himself some eyeballs and a hat (or other such accoutrement).

What do you think?

Tomorrow is a day off from the GAP (finally), and the boyfriend is off galavanting around Virginia, so I plan on getting some serious shop-related tasks done, including listing some new items. Oh, and watching the amazing Jennifer Murphy on Martha (yes, I do hate Martha Stewart more than almost any living person, but I love watching people make and cook - it's quite the conundrum. Plus, how could I not watch my favorite toymaking mama work her magic on television [again]?).

Well, I need to get some hot chili in me on this chilly night (ha!), and then I'm off to bed to catch up with my two favorite English magicians - have I mentioned how much I love this "Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell" business? Yes? Well, you'll probably be hearing a lot more about it, because it is AMAZING. Right up my fairy-tale-esque, whimsical, dark, eccentric alley. LOVE.

Goodnight,

Sarah

Another Update, and More Laziness

There have been several additions to the shop since the last time I posted about updates here. But the two items that I listed today are particularly interesting, as they are new!

Here they are:



That's right - portraits of clothing articles! I love clothes so much that I stooped to creating portraits of some of my favorite clothing articles (reasonable, right?) I rather like them.

What do you think?

In other news, I'm really loving this here crafty blog. I love her work, I love reading her posts, and oh, did I mention that I LOVE her work?

Just look at this:



Have I ever mentioned that I have a very soft spot in my heart for dapper animals wearing people clothes? No? Well, I do.

That's one of her older paintings, but it just may be my favorite. I wish I had the money to afford the Mr. Bear portrait on the first page of her shop, but I am BROKE. Well, maybe I can eek out a few extra dollars from the corporate nightmare that is the GAP....

Speaking of the GAP, I have to be there at 8 am tomorrow morning (and stay there until 5 pm), so I need to skedaddle off to bed. I can't wait to see what Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell are up to tonight....

Goodnight, loves.
-Sarah

Front Page News

Wow!

If you visit Etsy.com right now, one of my Insect Necklaces is featured on the front page in the "hand picked" section! Hooray!

In other news, I just got in an order of new (organic) supplies including antler burrs from white-tailed deer, badger toe bones, shark vertebrae, and coyote teeth. What could I possibly be planning?

Have a lovely night,
Sarah

Hooray! Some new things have been added to the shop, including the first of the "Mixed Media" necklaces. I have been making these necklaces on and off for the past two or three years, and after many requests to add them to my inventory, they are finally here!

Well, I say "they," but there is only one so far. But, have no fear - there will be more on Saturday.

Here are the new goodies:





Oh, and that one in the upper left? So hard to let that one go. I love it so....

I keep fooling around with my banners, but I really need to pick one and stick to it. I have a feeling that the current banner will not be around long. I want something fairytale-ish, but not too childish-looking. I think that fairytales are the most perfect form of storytelling, and they influence most aspects of my life in one way or another, so I want my "brand" banner to reflect their impact on my work. Anything whimsical, dark, and fantastical is right up my alley.

Look for more this weekend (I have ALL WEEKEND off - that has never happened to me while working at the Gap), and I plan on working on Strange Bird.

I'll see you soon!

Love,
Sarah

A New Look

Did you notice? It's so different! I needed a change.

I also need to be better about posting here. I am, however, a slacker at heart, and I believe I always shall be.

But, today I have a real reason to post! I'm putting up four new insect necklaces into my shop this afternoon, so skedaddle on over there, if you want one!

Here are the new pretties:



I'm getting a bit better at this photoshop thing, no? (Well, the pictures were all put into one in MS Paint, but I resized and cropped and added the text in Photoshop! Now, I need to figure out how to add my custom banner to this blog...Hrm.)

Have a lovely evening, all you hunnies out in blogland.

-Sarah

"I should have been a great many things..."

It's so true. I should have been (or should be) an anthropologist, an Artist-with-a-capital-A, a museum curator, an authoress, an entomologist, a fashion designer.

Indeed, I should have been a great many things.

But, what I am is also pretty amazing. I am an opera singer, a jewelry designer, a small business owner, a pretty good chef, a budding homemaker, and so much more. I'm Sarah, what can I say?

Proof positive I should have been an entomologist:



She is for sale in
the shop right now! (Nevermind, she was purchased shortly after she was posted! Wow! If you are interested in another like her, just drop me a line over at Etsy!)

Have a good night - bundle up - it's chilly in my neck of the woods.

Here's what's up in the shop...

All of this stuff is for sale here, so go see for yourself!

Etsy!

I have finally set up an Etsy shop! Go here and see what's up (and what's for sale so far):

www.StrangeBirdHandmade.etsy.com

Now maybe I can actually SELL something, instead of hoarding like usual.

In other news, I am completely over-the-moon in love with this guy:



I have always had a soft spot in my heart for deformity (is that so wrong, really?). I was in love with weird-looking superheroes as a small girl (and a teenage girl, and a twenty-something girl), and no-one did it for me so much as the Toxic Avenger. It's been years since I have seen "Toxic Avenger" or "Toxic Crusaders" (the kid-friendly morning cartoon version of Toxie), but, thanks to my amazing boyfriend, I now have all four movies. Let me tell you. "Toxic Avenger" is basically my perfect movie. I get all nostalgic for him when I watch it, which is nice, plus the movie has a lot of great humor in it that I can appreciate as an adult, as opposed to just the brutal, gory violence that I loved as a child. Numbers II through IV are not-so-good, though. I had only ever seen the first two -III was difficult to make it through, and I actually had to turn off IV a few times (and not just because of the filthy shock-value humor). I am beaming now, having watched the original about three times so far, replaying all my favorite parts, of course (Oh, Melvin, how I love your cheesy, '80s falling-in-love montage).

My heart is pounding just thinking about Toxie kicking the asses of those jerks who pointed a gun at a baby. Ah, how I love him.

If only I hadn't gotten rid of my collection of T.A. stuff - comics, toys, what have you. Ah, well, I'm off to scour eBay now.

Cheerio

- Sarah

Crafty Slacker

Okay, so I've been a bad crafter lately.

But, here's what I've been doing instead:

What do you think? Has it been worth the recent lull in productivity? No? Well, I guess not, but it makes me feel better.

Have you ever had the overwhelming desire to simply stay in a moment, because you know you may never geet that feeling back? I had one of those times yesterday morning - after having gone into work at 8am, and having found out that I wasn't actually supposed to work that day, I came back home and had another cup of coffee, and went back to bed. It was pouring rain, and I had the windows open, and it smelled lovely and chilly, so I bundled up into my canopy bed with my favorite blankets. The light was so fuzzy, like it was being sifted through the atmosphere of the morning, and everything outside my canopy looked surreal, as if it were painted into place. There was a flock of wild turkeys outside my window, and they were fighting, but everytime the thunder would sound, they would make little frightened, surprised noises, which would get the crow in the tree above them going. All the lovely sounds, smells and sights combined to create my perfect morning.

The view from where I lay:

Now I really MUST get back to my sketchbook, and to "Boxing Helena," which I have so rudely interrupted to jot down this post.

Here's to misty, distilled-gloom mornings

-Sarah

I'm bad at blogging.

Here's what I've been doing while I've been neglecting this blog:

More Storybook nonsense. These are both about 12 inches high, and are made completely of old children's books.

There has been a bit of work on jewelry, but not much:

A Haydn aria, some jasper and turquoise earrings, and a coral branch with some jade and some birds. I love the first two, but I'm not sure about the coral.

Mostly, what I've been doing is working at the Gap. Ugh.

Well, I'm off to watch some Rachael Ray and get ready for work. AGAIN.

Take care, and would you like to open up a Gap account and save fifteen percent today?

-Sarah

What a day for a daydream...

It's been really nice outside, so I've been having lots of sylvan kinds of daydreams (along with a disturbing amount of housewifey daydreams, accompanied by copious amounts of "fancy" cooking). But here's where I've been spending a lot of time lately:

Lovely, no? Here's what I've been doing indoors:

More Storybook goodness. I can't wait utnil my online shop is up, I want to show off my pretties. I'm supposed to do a festival coming up next month, but I just found out last week that I need to have all my tax stuff straight in order to do it, and I'm not sure if I can get it together in time. It's really a shame, because I would quite like to do it, I think.

Ah, well, such is life. I'll still apply to be a vendor, and we'll see what happens.

Now back to another fabulous episode of MST3K (oh, how I adore Tom Servo!)

-Sarah

Look at what I made!

How exciting is this?

I made these pastries just now, and they are so pretty that I had to post them. (Duane, are you seeing this? I made these!)

And here's what I had for dinner just now (like anyone cares). Delicious.

Now back to the sweat shop.

-Sarah

Interesting...

I seem to love adding ellipses to my post titles...and basic sentences...and, well, it gets kind of intense.

But, in other news, I met an amazing lady the other day who owns a shop here in Howell, MI called "Eclectic Twyst," and she wants to purchase some of my jewelry for her shop. Awesome, right? I left my card for her in her shop today, so hopefully she'll call me back.

Here's what I've been doing today:



And now, I'm going to do some more.

-Sarah

A few of my favorites...

These are some of my current favorites.

-Sarah

Okay, now that that's out of the way...

I can make a real introductory post.

Welcome to the online blogdom of Strange Bird! I am a one-girl show located in Michigan, and I make jewelry and other sundry nonsense. Right now, there is really nothing to say, nothing to show, nothing of note, but someday...ah, someday, there...will be?

My website is in the works right now, thanks to my lovely IT-guy boyfriend and my equally lovely father, so keep your eyes peeled for new wonderfulness there.

In the meantime, I'm going to post just one measly image, to make sure I've got the hang of the "posting images" thing, and to show off the amazing macro- on my camera:



Okay, good - that worked!

Cheers for now,
Sarah

Inaugural Post of a long-time Anti-Blogger

Well, I've done it.

I've broken down.

I've created a blog.

So there.